Is the situation about the Coronavirus worrying?

[Chloe88]

On 1/25/2020 at 10:25 PM, FeichtKatze said:

says one thing, social media an other

Social media is a big, big, huge, gigantic pile of poo. It's full of stinking, steaming lies.

 

More people die of smoking....., yet do people panic that 100,000's die of smoking related illnesses?

[Guest]

I think the only unnerving thing, is my clients wishing me good luck for my trip to China vs wishing me a safe trip o_O

 

[Tree snake]

2 hours ago, Chloe88 said:

Social media is a big, big, huge, gigantic pile of poo. It's full of stinking, steaming lies.

 

More people die of smoking....., yet do people panic that 100,000's die of smoking related illnesses?

You pretty much nailed the point I was trying to make. 

[Tanwen]

The Guardian is one of the more reliable (though not completely) sources
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/jan/27/what-is-coronavirus-symptoms-sars-china-wuhan?utm_term=RWRpdG9yaWFsX0d1YXJkaWFuVG9kYXlVS19XZWVrZGF5cy0yMDAxMjg%3D&utm_source=esp&utm_medium=Email&CMP=GTUK_email&utm_campaign=GuardianTodayUK

[Guest]

9 minutes ago, CBC said:

There's one confirmed case in Toronto and the patient is in isolation in hospital... and I have a friend who lives about 45 mins away from Toronto and is now refusing to leave her apartment.

 

😶

Yeah in my city, all face masks are selling out and there isn't a single case here yet.

 

I couldn't even find a single Shoppers Drug Mart with a set of adult masks, or hardware store.

 

I am *going* to China. I need those masks more than they do! 

 

Where I am going has over 500 cases. 

 

Crazy how fear can turn people irrational. 

 

Just had a client try to talk me out of travel to China, pleading with me as if I am going to die.

 

My "if it's my time it's my time" mindset probably didn't help. 

 

I really hate fear mongering in the news as it doesn't help anyone. 

[Skycaptain]

Yet Chinese overseas seem to wear facemasks as a fashion accessory. Daft thing is that they're useless as an antiviral measure 

[Tanwen]

WHO has declared it to be a global health emergency:

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-51318246?ns_mchannel=social&ns_source=facebook&ns_campaign=bbcnews&ocid=socialflow_facebook&fbclid=IwAR0maKRw24wY_o_AOKxNCuSUl4l0Au5WGlfrFQEj4-5abehGRjYMNeVzrQg&fbclid=IwAR3JEK6Ddsaa1SdVJztA4-Zg9lhnmQ9lhbosn-8_ygwltRm61Q3hMFsSoh0&fbclid=IwAR2is_9If5lx3pU5u_IfePWdRIbcq3ed7c-RYrTrKktjaLZNILj-P9jUkOY

[Michael2020]

I read somewhere 8000 people die in the uk from flu each year? But the news was saying that China made a educated prediction (lol) that this virus could kill 30,000,000 people.🤔 how do they get that number? 

[Skycaptain]

1 hour ago, Michael2020 said:

I read somewhere 8000 people die in the uk from flu each year? But the news was saying that China made a educated prediction (lol) that this virus could kill 30,000,000 people.🤔 how do they get that number? 

They use the same algorithms that estate agents around here use to determine property values 😋😋

[Zagadka]

If you want to put things in perspective, outside of China, the common flu strains are far more dangerous right now.

 

The main defense against these bugs is the herd. It requires everyone washing regularly, having decent hygiene, getting vaccines when that is applicable, etc. Unfortunately, I don't trust my fellow humans at all.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Michael2020 said:

I read somewhere 8000 people die in the uk from flu each year? But the news was saying that China made a educated prediction (lol) that this virus could kill 30,000,000 people.🤔 how do they get that number? 

Well 800 or so died with SARS, but there was a much longer span of time. This has already killed around 200 in a mere fraction of that time. 

 

They are likely predicting it to spread to a country without the resources to control it. If this happened, then the deaths would skyrocket. 

 

I just don't see where they got their number from either, as it's like predicting the date the world ends. 

[kenny.]

i think the big thing about the Coronavirus is that it can spread during the incubation period, rather than after someone starts showing symptoms. that's why it is so much more widespread in a short amount of time as compared to SARS. although, i think one thing to point out is that Coronavirus is said to be much less severe than SARS was. i just think rationality has left a lot of people, maybe be cautious but don't freak out about it. i read in an article that a lot of the people who died from Coronavirus were suffering from other underlying health conditions or were old, so there's that too. i don't know, i'm not very worried.

[Guest]

19 minutes ago, Zagadka said:

It requires everyone washing regularly, having decent hygiene

In mainland you will literally see some people spit inside public places. Some farting on elevators with no shame and the like. 

 

Some of these people don't give a f***. 

 

It took me a good solid week to get over my shock at how rude some were. 

 

Like we are talking people picking their nose and wiping the snot onto the train posts you hold onto. Grown adults. 

 

I saw this a few times, or on elevator walls, too shocked to yell at the person because we are never trained to deal with this socially. 

 

Wiping snot on objects and not in cloths. 

 

Am totally not surprised at the spread of this. 

 

Obviously not all, as not all are raised equally, but this is a highly common sigh that tends to take tourists by surprise. 

 

This to me is why you don't waste time with blocking borders.

[Chloe88]

9 hours ago, Perspektiv said:

In mainland you will literally see some people spit inside public places. Some farting on elevators with no shame and the like. 

 

Some of these people don't give a f***. 

 

It took me a good solid week to get over my shock at how rude some were. 

 

Like we are talking people picking their nose and wiping the snot onto the train posts you hold onto. Grown adults. 

 

I saw this a few times, or on elevator walls, too shocked to yell at the person because we are never trained to deal with this socially. 

 

Wiping snot on objects and not in cloths. 

 

Am totally not surprised at the spread of this. 

 

Obviously not all, as not all are raised equally, but this is a highly common sigh that tends to take tourists by surprise. 

 

This to me is why you don't waste time with blocking borders.

 

 

That is so true. A lot of people are just totally filthy fucks with zero hygiene. Sneezing without a tissue, coughing openly and the disgusting behaviour you have talked about.

 

And don't try giving me the "mental illness" argument, but a lot of people just smell terrible because they don't actually wash and somehow they think its "cool".

 

We should stop the practice of handshakes. 

 

 

 

[pickles.]

30 minutes ago, Chloe88 said:

We should stop the practice of handshakes. 

I second this.

[Michael2020]

10 hours ago, Perspektiv said:

Well 800 or so died with SARS, but there was a much longer span of time. This has already killed around 200 in a mere fraction of that time. 

 

They are likely predicting it to spread to a country without the resources to control it. If this happened, then the deaths would skyrocket. 

 

I just don't see where they got their number from either, as it's like predicting the date the world ends. 

I know this outbreak is a serious situation and I agree if it gets to a country that can’t manage it it will be a big disaster. But I think from a media point of view they love to scare people and also I think it is being used as a diversion from other political matters going on in the world. 

[Michael2020]

2 minutes ago, pickles mcgee said:

I second this.

I agree, where I work I’m shaking hands with people all day and as soon as I can I go to the  sanitizer straight after lol 

[Guest]

3 hours ago, Michael2020 said:

I agree, where I work I’m shaking hands with people all day and as soon as I can I go to the  sanitizer straight after lol 

I still remember sitting in a clients office, and waiting while they were on a call as they had asked me to drop in for a quote request. 

 

I looked in horror, as he dug an index deep into his nostril, and fished out a booger. 

 

This wasn't the horrifying part. 

 

It was that this wasn't enough. He just had to make a snot ball, rolling his snot between his index and thumb, slowly until the desired shape was created.

 

Then at least he had some consideration. Aimed away from me, and flicked it away. 

 

Again. Good client, so I couldn't verbally say what my mind was thinking: "Dude. No. Forget the quote. There's an elephant in the room and we must address it. Like WTF!"

 

We finish the transaction, and he extends his hand to shake mine, and all I could come up with was "I have a flu", to outright avoid the full out rejection. 

 

I really hate handshakes but they are integral to doing business. 

 

Needless to say, I always carry hand sanitizer with me. 

 

I worked with enough "I know where my hands have been" types who rarely washed their hands after using the toilet (yes--for number 2s too) to know better.

[ThatGoofyGuy]

According to a source I found, the death rate is estimated to 3 %. According to the same source, the common flu has a death rate of 0,1 % but is more contagious. So it seems it is more dangerous than a common flu, but as other people pointed out, China isn't known for the efficency of its health system, so it might be less dangerous than it seems. Plus, the SARS virus, which also appeared in China was both more deadly and more contagious than the coronavirus. It killed less than a thousand people WORLDWIDE.

 

Edit : here is a link to some cool graphic. It's in French, sorry.

[Skycaptain]

@ThatGoofyGuy, Google translates it into English, so no worries.

 

Even better I needed a refresher on translating written French 😋😋

[Guest]

The death tolls, may be inaccurate considering the rapidity with which some are dying. A couple days ago, as many as over 60 people had died in the same day in China. When you're triaging at this rate, you don't have time to tabulate numbers rapidly enough to keep up to the media's hunger for updates. Also, you don't want to send shock waves of panic through your population, so you have to be mindful of this in how you deliver the numbers, but whilst being mindful you cannot lost transparency as it would hurt your standing both globally, and in the eyes of the WHO.

 

However, the infection rates, definitely are, considering the statistics are based only on those who self-admitted themselves to hospitals.

 

So this is where the problem truly is. Is you have hundreds of thousands if not more, in public spaces around many that are infected.

 

Many get sick, don't feel sick enough to take a day off, or stay out of malls and public places, and infect many indirectly through these means.

 

I'm also hearing cases of discrimination against the Chinese, due to this wherever they travel. One of which was a Chinese tourist collapsed with a heart attack, and many feared the Coronavirus, so he was cordoned off and nobody touched him until there was certainty.

 

So unnecessary fear mongering, has dire consequences.

 

 

 

[Salmiakki]

On 1/27/2020 at 10:27 PM, Chloe88 said:

More people die of smoking....., yet do people panic that 100,000's die of smoking related illnesses?

That's different. The illnesses that are caused by smoking don't spread. I'm not risking my health when I interact with someone who smokes. I'm not gonna get those smoking related illnesses by interacting with someone who has them. And yes I know that cigarette smoke is harmful to people who aren't smoking, but as long as you stay away from the smoke, you'll be fine. If you're not around people when they smoke, no one's smoking is going to harm you. Smoking related illnesses do not spread.

[Guest]

 "Alert, not anxious." 

[Guest]

People are overreacting with the coronavirus.

 

Partly due to misinformation. 

 

You need close contact with someone to catch it. Even then. Just like influenza, this is exchanged via tiny droplets so you would have to be in rather close contact for this to occur. 

 

I'm in China and there is this fear many have, that they will catch it simply by breathing infected air. 

 

Same types of fears would push some to shun someone Chinese seeing them coughing in their city. 

 

Some of the fears you hear about are ridiculous outright. 

 

Many were thinking I was headed on this one way death trip. 

 

People really need to give their fears perspective. 

[ColeHW34]

Ha. That virus?

All it is is a bad flu with minor pneumonia.

If it could make you go into a cytokine storm or create a new strain caused by coinfection with avian flu with 60% mortality rate without proper treatment then yes that's a bit worrying.

Point being all this fear only makes outcomes worse. 

 

Panic is the leading cause of death in accidents or incidents after all

[Philip027]

Quote

That's different. The illnesses that are caused by smoking don't spread. I'm not risking my health when I interact with someone who smokes. I'm not gonna get those smoking related illnesses by interacting with someone who has them. And yes I know that cigarette smoke is harmful to people who aren't smoking, but as long as you stay away from the smoke, you'll be fine. If you're not around people when they smoke, no one's smoking is going to harm you. Smoking related illnesses do not spread.

I've been around my parents back in times when they smoked; even when they weren't currently smoking, they still smelled like smoke a lot of the time.  And plenty of people smoke way more than they did.  Not to mention a lot of smokers will smoke in a car or home; how do you propose getting away from that as a passenger/kid?

 

I don't think avoiding the influence of secondhand smoke is as simple as you make it out to be.  And it's still harmed/killed tons more people than this coronavirus, for that matter.

[Guest]

CDC estimates there has been at least 12,000 flu deaths between Oct 1 2019 and February 1 2020

 

Source

 

Currently 806 deaths due to coronavirus

 

Source (updating live, so it might change later)

 

I guess my point is, get your flu shot.

 

 

[Sally]

On 1/28/2020 at 2:33 PM, Skycaptain said:

Yet Chinese overseas seem to wear facemasks as a fashion accessory. Daft thing is that they're useless as an antiviral measure 

They do help prevent spread of a virus by coughs in close quarters.  

[Sally]

On 2/7/2020 at 9:27 PM, ColeHW34 said:

Ha. That virus?

All it is is a bad flu with minor pneumonia.

 

Pneumonia is never minor, especially for infants, young children, older people, people with pulmonary disease, or immuno-suppressed people.  

[Guest]

21 hours ago, Sally said:

They do help prevent spread of a virus by coughs in close quarters.  

Lack of education make them useless in some quarters. 

 

By education, am eluding to levels of information some in western societies take for granted. 

 

Many don't practice good hand hygiene. This is critical. Without it, the mask becomes just that. An accessory. A rather useless one, to boot. Like a car with great brakes, but leaking brake fluid, and losing brake pressure by the minute. You can keep the rotors looking pristine to boot, but it will look pretty and even functional, but is utterly useless for safety. 

It can only truly protect those around someone who is sick using them properly. 

 

By the first dozen of people I have seen in the last few days remove them to cough their guts out (a few in my face), I sort of accepted I may likely eventually come back to Canada with the illness o_O

 

This isn't for the lack of trying to stay healthy. But that lack of education (and access to critical info) some have due to levels of government control, is why something like this would spread so horribly. 

 

The mask in these settings are no better than a placebo effect.